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An unusual aerial operation rekindled the story of a giant figure carved on an English hill, created by New Zealand soldiers after World War I and preserved as a military memory and historical heritage.
A Royal Air Force Chinook helicopter dumped 10 tons of chalk over Beacon Hill, in Wiltshire, southern England, during a restoration operation of the Bulford Kiwi, a giant figure created by New Zealand soldiers in 1919.
The action was conducted by the Defence Infrastructure Organisation, linked to the British Ministry of Defence, with participation from military personnel, volunteers, conservationists, New Zealand representatives, and ground support teams.
Carved on a slope of Salisbury Plain, the monument represents a kiwi, a bird associated with New Zealand’s national identity.
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The design was made with chalk, a light material that creates contrast with the vegetation and allows the image to be seen from a distance.
According to Historic England, the figure measures about 127 meters from head to toe, has a beak approximately 45 meters long, and features the initials “N Z” below its feet.
What is the Bulford Kiwi
The Bulford Kiwi is part of a visual tradition present in areas of chalk hills in England, where figures are formed by exposing the light layers of the terrain.
In Bulford, however, the image has a direct link to military history.
It was created by members of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force who were awaiting return to the country after the end of World War I.
The composition relies on the contrast between the chalk and the vegetation cover.
Therefore, the figure requires periodic maintenance to remain visible.
“Chalk” is a form of white, soft, and porous limestone, primarily composed of calcium carbonate.
In exposed areas, the action of rain, wind, and plant growth reduces the sharpness of the contours over time.
In the restoration, the Chinook transported the material to the hill and deposited it over the drawing area.
After the drop, volunteers and technical teams manually spread the chalk, adjusting the material to the figure’s outline.
This ground work is necessary to restore the lines without altering the recognized shape of the monument.
Monument was created by New Zealand soldiers
The figure was created in 1919 by New Zealand troops stationed at Sling Camp, an area near Bulford Camp.
Historical records indicate that soldiers from the Canterbury, Otago, and Wellington battalions participated in the execution under the coordination of Captain Harry Clark.
The design was conceived by Sergeant-Major Percy Blenkarne, while the terrain outline was managed by Sergeant-Major Victor Low.
The construction method was straightforward and required manual labor.
The soldiers removed part of the topsoil layer and filled the outline with chalk stones, creating the white image on the hill.
Historic England associates the work with the period of waiting for the repatriation of the troops, when New Zealand soldiers remained in England after the conflict ended.
Decades later, vegetation managed to cover part of the figure.
Official records indicate that the kiwi was restored in 1980 by soldiers of the 249 Signal Squadron and underwent maintenance actions in subsequent years.
As with structures made directly on the terrain, interventions aim to preserve the design without transforming the slope into an artificial piece or out of its original context.
Restoration with Chinook and manual work
The conservation operation brought together the Defence Infrastructure Organisation, the New Zealand High Commission, the Landmarc group, local conservation organizations, volunteers from the 3rd (UK) Division Signal Regiment, and members of Operation Nightingale.
The work combined air transport, limestone material handling, and manual work on the slope.
Created in 2011 in Salisbury Plain, Operation Nightingale is a British military archaeology initiative.
According to the UK government, the program uses excavations and archaeological activities to aid in the recovery of wounded, injured, or sick military personnel, as well as veterans.
At the Bulford Kiwi, the group worked with other teams in the monument’s restoration process.
The restoration also included cultural expressions related to New Zealand.
During the action, a waiata, a traditional Māori song, and a kukri dance, associated with the New Zealand Defence Force and the traditions of the Nepalese Gurkhas, were performed.
These performances were recorded by the British government as part of the site’s preservation ceremony.
Why the design is protected in the United Kingdom
The Bulford Kiwi received official protection in 2017, when it was recognized as a national historic monument in the United Kingdom.
The decision was made by the UK’s Department for Culture, Media and Sport, with a recommendation from Historic England, in the context of the centenary commemorations of the Battle of Messines.
For Historic England, the monument records the presence of New Zealand troops on British soil and the participation of these soldiers in World War I.
The institution states that almost 10% of New Zealand’s population at the time fought in the conflict, which amounted to about 100,000 members of the country’s forces.
The connection with Messines also appears in official records.
The battle took place in June 1917, on the Western Front, in the region of present-day Belgium, and had significant participation from New Zealand forces.
By protecting the Bulford Kiwi, Historic England classified the figure as one of the sites associated with the memory of these troops and the losses recorded during the war.
Richard Osgood, senior archaeologist at the Defence Infrastructure Organisation, stated that the agency is responsible for 772 protected monuments in areas of the British Ministry of Defence, with records ranging from prehistory to the Cold War.
Regarding the Bulford Kiwi, he said that although it is one of the youngest, having been constructed in 1919, the monument has “national and international importance” due to its association with the New Zealand Armed Forces.
Osgood also stated that the annual replenishment of the chalk “reinforces the ties” between the United Kingdom and New Zealand and keeps the memory of the sacrifices made in World War I alive.
The statement was released by the British government in the announcement of the restoration.
Chalk, memory, and conservation on an English hill
The preservation of the Bulford Kiwi depends on a process different from that applied to monuments built of stone, bronze, or concrete.
Since the drawing is incorporated into the relief, its maintenance involves the replenishment of material, vegetation control, and protection of the original outline.
With each intervention, responsible teams need to balance visibility, archaeological conservation, and respect for the landscape’s characteristics.
The operation with the Chinook made this maintenance effort visible.
The helicopter was used to transport the chalk to an area difficult to manage by conventional methods, while volunteers completed the finishing directly on the ground.
The result does not create a new work but restores a figure that has been part of the hillside for over a century.
The case also shows how marks made in natural landscapes can become historical documents.
In the Bulford Kiwi, the heritage value lies not only in the scale of the drawing but in the connection between the site, the soldiers who created it, and the period of transition between the end of the war and the return of the troops to New Zealand.
More than a hundred years later, the bird drawn in chalk remains associated with a military memory constructed outside the country it represents.
By remaining visible on the hill, the monument preserves a form of historical record that depends both on official documentation and the physical work of maintenance.
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